May 2025 - Working Mother

Mothering, as any close observer of nature knows, is hard work. Even under the most felicitous of conditions, the young and defenseless must perpetually be nourished, guided, and protected. Under siege by storm or drought or predator, that effort escalates exponentially. For human mothers, too, the work is often arduous and the threats  – and compromises – staggeringly abundant. Indeed, in all its myriad forms and manifestations, “mothering” - the care and nurturing of others - is an act of selflessness, yes, but also of hopefulness.  During times of collective despair, it is, perhaps, the most hopeful thing we can do.

Working Mother

by Kathleen Hirsch

Across the miles between us

there grows a garden,

and two seats tucked together,

backed by silver leaves.

How can I tell you from this distance

that you are dawn and day song

to me? Fire and earth,

the seed’s first leaf?

You learn to laugh

in my absence, manage

your scrapes – grow

towards the available light.

From an upper room I overlook

unfurling ferns, forget-me-nots,

observe the pair of vacant chairs

and strain to hear an echo.

Even far from home,

love has its work to do,

bearing the heart’s stalk safe

to the ravenous altar of return.

“Working Mother” is included in Mending Prayer Rugs, Kathleen Hirsch’s first collection of poems.  She also has authored A Sabbath Life: One Woman’s Search for Wholeness and offers workshops in contemplative writing online and in the Boston area.